3 ms·
The book mentioned by the OP discusses the "virus theory" of cancer, which was very popular for a while. What people eventually realized was that cancer is the
by RK 15y ago
The book mentioned by the OP discusses the "virus theory" of cancer, which was very popular for a while.
What people eventually realized was that cancer is the result of genetic mutations and there are many potential causes of the mutations, viruses being one of them. E.g. HPV can lead to cervical, anal, throat cancer, etc.
An interesting book. The books feels a little bit narrowly focused on medical oncology, but the author is a medical oncologist, so you'd expect that.
- pradocchia 15y agoI'm in the middle of the book myself, and I half-suspect the/a common thread will turn out to be chronic inflammation. Bacteria causing ulcers causing stomach cancer seems a case in point. Also, tobacco & lung cancer: sure, the smoke contains carcinogens, but you're also looking at decades of chronic inflammation in the lungs. Likewise, the recent WHO announcement re: cell phones & brain cancer was poopooed, since everybody knows the radiation is not powerful enough to damage DNA, but! it could certainly cause some low-grade inflammation of brain tissue. Low-grade inflammation + daily use -> chronic inflammation -> cancer? No, I don't know how something like leukemia would fit under this rubric.
- Mz 15y agoFWIW: Inflammation is known to promote infection. For example, it is well established that reducing inflammation in cystic fibrosis patients reduces incidence of infection. Reducing inflammation via diet is one of the things that helped me get off multiple drugs, most of which had anti-inflammatory properties as their primary or secondary purpose.